


I'll Stay

by IcyWasabi



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Best Friends, Coming Out, First Kiss, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Fukuro says fuck, High School, M/M, Middle School, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, They're gay your honor, lots of sleepovers, making out at training camp, slight angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:00:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24647590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IcyWasabi/pseuds/IcyWasabi
Summary: Fukuro and Shuugo have been best friends since middle school, but they end up drifting apart during high school.  They try and stay connected but with their lives and everything getting in the way, it just doesn't work.This fic gives them some much needed backstory.
Relationships: Hirugami Fukurou/Meian Shuugo
Kudos: 31





	I'll Stay

Shuugo Meian always had a love/hate relationship with Fukuro Hirugami. It all started when they were both 1st years in middle school. They went to the same school and ended up in the same class. They were also both on the volleyball team. Fukuro was always the best player on the court. He was the tallest in the club, his receiving and blocking were the best, and everyone liked him. Shuugo hated that the two played the same position and were the same age, but Fukuro was already miles ahead in terms of skill. Shuugo wanted to change that.

“Will you stay and practice with me some more, Hirugami-kun?” Shuuugo asked one day after they were let out practice.

“Yeah, I’ll stay,” Fukuro had answered. And from those words, their friendship formed. 

The two were together more often than not. A lot of the time was after volleyball had let out and they wanted to practice receives or spikes or serves or anything they could possibly do with only two people. And afterwards when they would both collapse, too exhausted to go on, they would go down to the local Easy-Mart and argue about whose turn it was to pay for popsicles. They would have sleepovers at each other’s houses, staying up late under the covers, watching old volleyball tapes that Fukuro’s parents had. They would take notes on the videos with a flashlight and imagine what their futures in volleyball looked like. The teams they wanted to play for always changed, but one thing didn’t. The fact that they would be playing together. 

By their second year in middle school, the two were inseparable. The two met up on their walk to school. They ate lunch together in the clubroom everyday, discussing plans of attack and rival schools. They stayed after practice and got food after that. Their sleepovers now happened every weekend, so much so that their parents joked that they might as well have a drawer for each other’s clothes, they were over at each other’s houses so often. And on top of that, their volleyball relationship had grown immensely too. The two middle blockers had pushed each other at every practice to go above and beyond. They were even known around the prefecture for their great teamwork and all around abilities. 

Then, in their third year their relationship was deepened, from being centered around volleyball, to being more centered on them. 

Both the boys were fairly popular in their school due to them being regulars on their national level team. Fukuro even more so since he was the captain. And Shuugo was not jealous of that, nope not at all. This played out to both boys getting a fair amount of confessions. It was after one of these confessions that Shuugo asked Fukuro a question. 

“Why don’t you ever accept any of them?” Shuugo asked while they were walking home one Friday night after volleyball. 

“Because I don’t like any of them like that and I think it would be rude to say that I do,” Fukuro replied casually.

“Oh,” Shuugo thought for a minute before his next sentence. “Then who do you like?”

Fukuro stopped walking for a moment, but jogged to catch up to Shuugo who had not stopped to begin with. “I don’t really like anyone,” he finally replied. Shuugo was still a little confused as to why Fukuro had paused before answering.

“Come on, there has to be someone you like!” Shuugo turned and started walking backwards in front of Fukuro. “There’s Hana-chan in class 3-B with the short hair, Yuki and Akako in our class, I’m pretty sure they both like you since they're always looking your way. And then Azami with the super long hair in class 2-A-”

“Stop!” Fukuro suddenly yelled leaving Shuugo surprised and causing them both to stop walking. “I–uh–I don’t really–like girls,” Shuugo didn’t know what to say. “I like boys,” Fukuro finished really quietly looking down to the ground. 

“Well, uh,” Shuugo started. “Everyone thinks Minori-kun is pretty hot, what about him?” Fukuro just stared at the other in disbelief.

“You don’t think it’s weird or gross that I like boys?” Fukuro asked in almost an accusing tone.

“Why would I think that?” Shuugo looked confused. “It doesn’t really matter who you like as long as we don’t like the same person because then I would have to fight you for them.” he stated simply. 

Fukuro started to tear up. “Thank you,” he said. 

“Woah, woah, why are you crying?” Shuugo put an arm around Fukuro. 

“Well–” he sniffled, “you’re the first person I’ve told and you’re my best friend and I didn’t want you to get angry or leave me.”

“I’ll never leave you so don’t worry,” Shuugo stated matter of factly. They were almost to the point in the path where they’d diverge to go to their separate house. “Do you want to stay with me at my house tonight?”

Fukuro wiped his tears away. “Yeah, I’ll stay with you.”

The two had a normal sleep over with the exception of them talking about cute boys as well as cute girls. 

~~

Fukuro woke up the next morning with Shuugo once again invading his futon and holding onto his arm like a teddy bear. He smiled at his friend and at his memories of what happened last night. He thought back through their conversation, thankful his best friend was so accepting. Then he stopped. One thing didn’t make sense. Shuugo had said something about if they ever liked the same person. Which would be impossible if Fukuro liked boys and Shuugo like girls. So why did he say it?

Shuugo picked that moment to wake up, letting go of Fukuro and stretching his long limbs all the way out. 

“Hey Shuugo?” 

“Yeah?” he said through a yawn.

“Do you remember last night when you said that if we liked the same person, you’d fight me?”

“Yeah I remember that, why?”

“Well if we both liked the same person it would have to be a guy since I only like guys but I thought you liked girls,” Fukuro rambled on.

“I like them both, boys and girls, I think.” 

“You do?!” Fukuro sat straight up, turning to face Shuugo. “Why didn’t you tell me last night?!” 

“I don’t know,” Shuugo scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. “I thought it was kind of your moment and didn’t really want to take it away from you?” His voice rose at the end making his sentence sound more like a question.

“Okay then.”

And that was that. 

~~  
The two finished out middle school and were going separate ways in high school. Fukuro would be going to Kamoedai as both his parents did and Shuugo to Akaho because his family couldn’t afford the high fees of Kamoedei. 

“We’ll still have sleepovers all the time right?” Fukuro asked one day during summer break while they were swinging on some swings. 

“Of course we will. We’re best friends and just because we’re going to other schools isn’t going to change that.” Shuugo said with all the confidence in the world. 

“Ok good.” They swung together in a heavy silence. They both knew that most middle school friendship fell apart when people went their separate ways. Neither of them wanted that. Both were determined not to let it happen.

“Hey Fukuro,”

“Yeah?”

“Promise me we’ll stay best friends.”

“I promise, I’ll stay.” 

~~

The two boys kept up their tradition of weekly sleepovers, talking about everything and nothing at the same time. They still watched old volleyball tapes under the covers, taking notes with a flashlight. They talked about people in their classes and on their teams, who was friendly and who was mean, who was cute and who wasn’t. Just anything to keep each in their lives. Their conversations almost always ended with some variation of “I wish we went to the same school” or “I miss seeing you everyday” or a simple “I miss you”.

One week during a sleepover, Shuugo made an announcement. 

“I have a girlfriend.” 

“A what?” Fukuro asked, spluttering. 

“A girlfriend, stupid.”

“You, finally decided to date someone?” He put his hand to his chin, pondering something. “I bet it’ll be over in a month.”

“What? That’s so rude!” Shuugo gave Fukuro’s shoulder a playful push. “I can make a relationship work.”

“Yeah, cause you did a great job of that in middle school.”

“The only reason none of those lasted is because I liked–” Shuugo stopped suddenly.

“You liked?” Fukuro prodded for an answer.

“None of them. I liked none of them as much as I should have for it to work.”

“Fine, but make sure she doesn’t get in the way of our sleepovers or volleyball practices.” 

“Don’t worry, she won’t.” And she didn’t. Not at first anyway. They still had their sleepovers, but Shuugo would occasionally call and cancel their after club practices to go on dates. And then it wasn’t just to go on dates, it was to go out with his new friends on the team. Then Fukuro started hanging out with his teammates more since he wasn’t always rushing off to meet Shuugo. Fukuro canceled one of their sleepovers because he was invited to a sleepover with some clubmates. Shuugo would occasionally do the same. The two just started drifting. Their weekly sleepovers became monthly. Instead of constantly texting, the two would text a few times a day, sometimes not even. 

At one of their now rare sleepovers, Shuugo had brought up their joint training camp coming up. 

“Are you guys ready to have your asses handed to you?” Shuugo asked.

“I don’t think that’s going to happen, shorty.” Fukuro had just gotten a growth spurt and was now three inches taller than Shuugo. 

“Don’t call me that. I’ll get my growth spurt soon enough and I’ll be towering over you. Seven feet tall and able to block any spike.”

“Ha! Like that’s ever going to happen!” Fukuro started rolling around on the floor laughing.

“Stop laughing! I might not get to seven feet, but I’ll still be taller than you.” Fukuro was still rolling and laughing.

“I said stop!” Shuugo grabbed Fukuro’s shoulders, pinning him to the floor and effectively stopping him from rolling and laughing. The two boys looked at each other then looked at the position they were in. Shuugo’s knees were right next to the other’s hips, while all his pressure was focused on holding down Fukuro. Shuugo’s arms were locked straight and so Fukuro brought his hands up and stabbed at Shuugo’s inner elbow, making his arms fold and the boy collapse. Both gave a quick laugh. They were chest to chest now and were looking each other in the eye. They realized at the same time how close their faces were to each other and Shuugo hurried to get up. Their faces were both very red and they both looked away from the other while they recovered.

After that “incident” it was somewhat awkward. But once they started playing Mario Kart, yelling ensured and everything went back to normal. 

~~

A few weeks later was the training camp. It was at Kamoedai since they had housing for all the boys. It was also during a break so the boys could practice all week long. 

As the Akaho school bus was pulling up to Kamoedai, Fukuro could see Shuugo in one of the bus windows looking out. Fukuro waved and the other waved back. But there was something wrong. He sat hunched in the seat, his eyes were glazed over, and his wave was short and unenthusiastic. Shuugo did not look like his usual outgoing self. 

The Akaho boys filed off the bus, the two teams faced each other and yelled their respective greetings. Then they moved on to the dorms where they would be sleeping. Fukuro stayed back for a moment so he could walk with Shuugo who was at the back of the group. 

“Are you okay?” Fukuro asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine why?” Shuugo seemed to notice his own unusual behavior and tried to act more normal. 

“You just seem… I don’t know, out of it?” 

“I’m probably just a little tired from the ride over.”

“It’s like a 30 minute ride, tops.” Shuugo didn’t answer after that and Fukuro didn’t push it. 

~~

Later in the day they started playing practice matches. Both Fukuro and Shuugo were on their teams' starting lineups as first years. Fukuro was very excited to play against his best friend and so he played all out. Shuugo on the other hand did not. He was subbed out halfway through the first set. Fukuro tried to catch Shuugo’s eye while he was rotated out to try and figure out what on earth was going on with him. But Shuugo never looked his way, keeping his head down and a towel on top. 

After they had finished practicing for the day they went to dinner. Fukuro sat his tray down next to Shuugo’s. 

“What the fuck is wrong with you today?” asked Fukuro

“I thought you didn’t swear,” said Shuugo as he stared into his bowl of rice. 

“I do when there is definitely something wrong with you,” he said, poking at his own food.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Shuugo grumbled.

“Yes you do. You were acting weird when you got off the bus and then you benched right away during the game and you’re still acting weird now.” A few people were starting to look in their direction since Fukuro’s voice had gotten louder as he talked. 

“Hey, lower your voice,” Shuugo tried to calm Fukuro down. “Can we talk about this later? When there aren’t so many people around?” 

“Fine,” Fukuro crossed his arms. “But you have to tell me what’s up with you.”

“Yeah, I will, just chill.” The two boys ate the rest of their food quickly and silently then both left together. Fukuro led them out of the building and down a path to a secluded park bench. They sat down.

“So?” Fukuro asked.

“So...” Shuugo tried to start.

“What’s wrong. I hate seeing you like this, especially since we haven’t seen each other in forever.”

“My girlfriend broke up with me.” Fukuro looked at Shuugo with his mouth wide open, not knowing what to say. “She broke up with me last night, right after school,” he started to tear up, “and she didn’t even give me a good explanation? She was like ‘I’m sorry Meian-kun, I just don’t think this is working out, but we can still be friends okay?’ and I just stood there like an idiot, not really knowing what to do. She eventually just walked away and then I went home and cried.” His tears were now flowing even faster. “I just–it’s like, was I not enough for her? Is there something wrong with me?”

“No, of course there’s nothing wrong with you!” Fukuro moved to hug his best friend and Shuugo buried his tearstained face in his neck. “If she doesn't like you for you, then she doesn't deserve to have you.” Fukuro was getting more and more angry as he spoke. He didn’t know how anyone could be so heartless. Especially toward Shuugo. He was literally the best guy ever. Shuugo was the whole package. “You know Shuugo, I think she’s probably really stupid.”

“Why–why is that?” Shuugo hiccuped. 

“Because she let an awesome catch of a guy like you slip away.” Fukuro said determinedly. 

“No, I’m really not,” he said sobbing some more.

“Yes, you really are,” Fukuro squeezed Shuugo even closer to him. “You’re caring and gentle and funny and cute and just all around amazing. And you’re super great at volleyball!” 

“You think I’m cute?” Shuugo asked, unburrying his face from Fukuro’s shoulder and looking the other in the eyes.

Fukuro started to panic. Had he really said that part out loud? Did he really just tell his best friend he thought he was cute? 

“Uh… yeah?” What an intelligent response. 

“Oh... Thanks, I guess.” They were both still staring into each other’s eyes, faces only inches apart. Fukuro glanced down and noticed how red and soft Shuugo’s lips looked in the moonlight. He thought about how easy it would be to lean down and kiss his soft, red lips. 

But he couldn’t. He couldn’t kiss him because he had just been dumped. Wait– was that the only reason Fukuro could think of? Not because they were best friends and had been since middle school or anything? Nope, just because Shuugo had just been dumped. Fukuro continued to stare down at Shuugo, admiring how the moonlight hit his cheekbones and made them glow. 

Shuugo also continued to stare up at Fukuro, noticing how his jawline had begun to sharpen in the time they had not seen each other. He noticed how his hair had grown longer and how his lips were slightly chapped. He noticed some stubble starting to grow in and put his hand up to brush it.

“What are you doing?” Fukuro asked. 

“You’re starting to get stubble?” Shuugo asked, running his thumb along his jawline, the rest of his hand under his chin. 

“Ah, yeah. It started to come in a little while ago. Dad showed me how to shave it, but it’s hard and I cut myself sometimes.” Fukuro whispered, not wanting Shuugo to stop.

Shuugo sat up a little higher and leaned in to get a better look, Fukuro’s arms still around him. 

“I like your stubble,” Shuugo murmured. He leaned up and brushed his lips against Fukuro’s cheek. Fukuro stiffened, his face going red. Shuugo looked into the other boy’s eyes looking for a sign to stop, but only saw desire. He planted a few more kisses along Fukuro’s jawline, making his way closer and closer to his lips. 

“Can I kiss you?” Shuugo asked, breath shaky.

“I think you just did a bunch of times,” Fukuro responded, breath just as shaky.

“No stupid,” Shuugo smiled a little, “I mean on the lips.”

“Yeah, go ahead.” Shuugo leaned in, touching their lips together tentatively. They both moved slowly getting a feel for it. Fukuro tried to lean down a little more in an attempt to deepen the kiss, but only succeeded in clacking their teeth together. They both pulled back, Fukuro looking sheepish and Shuugo giving a little giggle. They both sat back against the bench, Fukuro with his arm around Shuugo’s shoulders, and Shougo with his face buried in Fukuro’s chest. 

“Don’t leave me again Fukuro,” Shuugo whispered into Fukuro’s shirt.

“Don’t worry, I’ll stay.” he replied tenderly looking down at Shuugo’s dark hair.

**Author's Note:**

> I plan on continuing this, but if I don't get around to it, it can work as a one shot.


End file.
